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When one traces the golden thread of salvation history, the Holy Spirit is never absent. He is there, veiled or visible, from the dawn of creation to the descent at Pentecost. It was the Spirit who hovered over the deep (Gen. 1:2); the same Spirit who inspired the prophets of Israel (Ezek. 37:1-14); the same Spirit who overshadowed Mary, bringing about the Incarnation (Luke 1:35); and the same Spirit who descended upon Jesus at his baptism, publicly marking him for the messianic missi …

Then there are those moments—not when you have something difficult to say, but when you sense that the other person may. You have a feeling, or you may know, that he is embarrassed about something or is going through a difficult situation. It may be when you meet a friend who has kept his distance for a time. It may be when you notice that he is avoiding talking about a particular issue or person who would normally be a part of your conversation. Or it may be that you have heard …

We should first briefly consider some objections to the concept of miracles. Today, in the secular Western world, many are skeptical of the very possibility that miracles can occur.   This is an assumption of secular Westerners, but it is not shared by other peoples. And there is actually a great deal of evidence that miracles do occur, including in today’s world. The Catholic Church has rigorously evaluated many reported miracle …

In his book Radical Love: Introduction to Queer Theology, Patrick Cheng claims, “Radical love is ultimately about love [emphasis in original], which, as St. Paul teaches us, is patient and kind, and not envious, boastful, arrogant, or rude. As such, radical love is premised upon safe, sane, and consensual behavior.”ccii This language jibes with a prevailing modern sexual ethic that emphasizes consent and taking precautions against disease and pregn …

The Catholic Bible contains the deuterocanonical books because they were part of the biblical tradition that Jesus and the apostles were familiar with and made reference to. Called the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament that contained these books was widely used in the early Church because Greek (like English today) was a universal language of commerce. Some Protestants say we should not include the deuterocanonical books in the canon because Jesus and the apostles …